Career and Education Opportunities for Veterinarians in Seattle, Washington

For those living in the Seattle, Washington area, there are many career and education opportunities for veterinarians. About 1,550 people are currently employed as veterinarians in Washington. By 2016, this is expected to grow 29% to 2,000 people employed. This is not quite as good as the nation as a whole, where employment opportunities for veterinarians are expected to grow by about 33.0%. In general, veterinarians diagnose and treat diseases and dysfunctions of animals.

Income for veterinarians is about $37 hourly or $77,710 annually on average in Washington. Nationally, their income is about $38 hourly or $79,050 yearly. Earnings for veterinarians are better than earnings in the general category of Veterinary in Washington and better than general Veterinary category earnings nationally. People working as veterinarians can fill a number of jobs, such as: small animal veterinarian, equine vet , and large animal veterinarian.

There is one school within twenty-five miles of Seattle where you can study to be a veterinarian, among sixty-five schools of higher education total in the Seattle area. Given that the most common education level for veterinarians is a Doctoral degree, it will take four or five years to learn to be a veterinarian if you already have a Bachelor's degree, or eight to ten years starting with a high school diploma.

CAREER DESCRIPTION: Veterinarian

Veterinarian video from the State of New Jersey Dept. of Labor and Workforce Development

In general, veterinarians diagnose and treat diseases and dysfunctions of animals. They also may engage in a particular function, such as research and development, consultation, administration, technical writing, sale or production of commercial products, or rendering of technical services to commercial firms or other organizations.

Veterinarians attend lectures and continuing education courses. They also treat sick or injured animals by prescribing medication or performing surgery. Equally important, veterinarians have to advise animal owners regarding sanitary measures and treatment options. They are often called upon to collect body tissue or other body fluids for examination and analysis. They are expected to euthanize animals. Finally, veterinarians train and supervise staff who handle and care for animals.

Every day, veterinarians are expected to be able to evaluate problems as they arise. They need to piece together evidence to, in some sense, diagnose what is going on in a situation. It is also important that they think through problems and come up with general rules.

It is important for veterinarians to furnish care to a wide range of animals or specialize in a particular species. They are often called upon to inoculate animals against various diseases such as rabies and distemper. They also establish and conduct quarantine and testing procedures help stop the spread of diseases to other animals or to humans, and that comply with applicable government regulations. They are sometimes expected to formulate and execute animal nutrition and reproduction programs. Somewhat less frequently, veterinarians are also expected to direct the overall operations of animal hospitals or mobile services to farms.

Veterinarians sometimes are asked to direct the overall operations of animal hospitals or mobile services to farms. And finally, they sometimes have to perform administrative and business management tasks such as scheduling appointments, accepting payments from clients and maintaining business records.

Like many other jobs, veterinarians must be thorough and dependable and have exceptional integrity.

Similar jobs with educational opportunities in Seattle include:

Family Practice Physician. Diagnose, treat, and help prevent diseases and injuries that commonly occur in the general population.

Physician Assistant. Provide healthcare services typically performed by a physician, under the supervision of a physician. Conduct complete physicals, provide treatment, and counsel patients. May, in some cases, prescribe medication. Must graduate from an accredited educational program for physician assistants.

Veterinarian Technician. Perform medical tests in a laboratory environment for use in the treatment and diagnosis of diseases in animals. Prepare vaccines and serums for prevention of diseases. Prepare tissue samples, take blood samples, and execute laboratory tests, such as urinalysis and blood counts. Clean and sterilize instruments and materials and maintain equipment and machines.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES: Veterinarian Training

University of Washington-Seattle Campus - Seattle, WA

University of Washington-Seattle Campus, 1400 NE Campus Parkway, Seattle, WA 98195-4550. University of Washington-Seattle Campus is a large university located in Seattle, Washington. It is a public school with primarily 4-year or above programs. It has 39,675 students and an admission rate of 61%. University of Washington-Seattle Campus has a master's degree program in Comparative & Laboratory Animal Medicine which graduated one student in 2008.

LOCATION INFORMATION: Seattle, Washington

Seattle, Washington photo by Dschwen

Seattle is located in King County, Washington. It has a population of over 598,541, which has grown by 6.2% in the past ten years. The cost of living index in Seattle, 126, is far greater than the national average. New single-family homes in Seattle are valued at $206,700 on average, which is well below the state average. In 2008, five hundred ninety-five new homes were built in Seattle, down from seven hundred seventy-five the previous year.

The three big industries for women in Seattle are health care, professional, scientific, and technical services, and educational services. For men, it is professional, scientific, and technical services, construction, and educational services. The average commute to work is about 25 minutes. More than 47.2% of Seattle residents have a bachelor's degree, which is higher than the state average. The percentage of residents with a graduate degree, 17.3%, is higher than the state average.

The unemployment rate in Seattle is 7.8%, which is less than Washington's average of 8.7%.

The percentage of Seattle residents that are affiliated with a religious congregation, 37.3%, is less than the national average but more than the state average. The largest religious groups are the Catholic Church, the LDS (Mormon) Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

Seattle is home to the Berth 5 and the Akli Point Lighthouse as well as Lincoln Park and Myrtle Edwards Park. Shopping centers in the area include Lake City Shopping Center, Westwood Village Shopping Center and Oak Tree Village Shopping Center. Visitors to Seattle can choose from A-1 Motel, Arlington Suites and Marriott Sea-Tac Airport for temporary stays in the area.